Hack-enstance

If she'd had her guitar there with her, Jill would have stayed longer.  It was so comforting and comfortable to be at her former mentor's place again for a visit.  

When her life-longest teacher asked "so, how far did you ever get with that thoroughbred of yours anyway?" she made it sound like "rockstar-horse" of yours...  Their paths had crossed when Jill was riding without a coach, retraining a big former racehorse into the   s a n e  eventing enthusiast she knew he could become, ha.
*
It was just happenstance, but in retrospect, Jill thought it was wise to walk the log and then come back do flat work. He was a hot thoroughbred after all.  The footing was so soft... and, Jill had to admit to herself that the pony was better schooled than she would have thought. She didn't really want to approved of the work of the former trainer, but here he was... More successfully schooled than the old man rockstar horse was when she'd first got her hands on him, that's for sure.  Or was it the discipline? Hadn't the old man gone hunter vs jumper?

The little guy'd had too much work in the draw lines though because he even tended to get overbent as a cleverly, athletic avoidance. But still, he felt lovely...

She had imagined canter walk, walk canter transitions the whole big long drive over there. and just swinging the leg to get the lead changes down the straight line. They'd actually only done a few tiny canters, with transitions the worst of it all. But, it was nice to know he had the cloud canter already. Imagine where they could go!

Jill started thinking about a top hat the whole long drive to work after that...

Too bad about the puddle disagreement though. She had almost thought beforehand that perhaps riding was a good place to direct her confrontational nature (instead of every where else in her life), but, then at the refusal/run back at the dwindling puddle, she was sure that he started it all.


How did her reins always end up so much too long? He had a shorter neck than anything she'd ridden before, that's for sure.

Blind Luck

Jill thought the Jazz Festival was a nice place to meet a person.  And the trend for home-health-care gave her hope too...  She was certainly concerned about the lack of long term health care, elder abuse and the drunk and difficult to move being assualted by police.  Their conversation was stimulating and she liked to garner his opinion on things.  Which side of the park debate did her date fall on, anyway, preservation or enjoyment?

She was proud of herself for her proactive effort at honesty, versus withholding knowledge, including self-awareness, and even in the face of discomfort.  He took the information, about her relationship status/intentions all in stride.  Although he did laugh out loud.

Roomie isn't a cougar is she? Jill's mind did still sometimes wander.

"I need to know exactly where you are taking him" said the owner's mother, who was responsible for the horse Jill was riding these days.  They'd twisted off the third shoe, wretchedly, in as many weeks.  He was loving their rides and the horse was happy and healthy otherwise, but of course Mom couldn't recognize that part...

Jill couldn't really answer because she had been taking him exactly, over every inch of the entire 40 acres of deep snow on the property, over and over and over.  He loved it!  She loved it! "We've just been following Jet's hoofprints." she answered, and lost the ride.

It wasn't til her next visit to the stable she realized the black pony didn't wear shoes!

Hello Smarty

Now it wasn't just the young organic farmer, Roomie's coworker who was also almost 17 years younger than her, asked if she wanted to go someplace together after work. He was cute and funny and smart, and a drummer, and she wanted to go.  But, she was getting picked up by a former guitarist and couldn't accept the instant invite, alas.  Would there be another?


Jill's boss set other standards, such as the mandatory meeting that was a job requirement for all staff, but not for all the staff, since one coworker didn't show and yet was giggling with the boss the next day in the office.  Jill put it out of her mind and just kept doing the work.  She certainly had a lot going on!


"Why are the barn doors so closed?" another boss asked, coming in.

"Because I just had the foal out on cross ties for her very first time" Jill said, peeking out the stall door she was working in, grinning over the wheel barrow. "and, she was GOOD AS GOLD while I groomed her." The boss also smiled, slightly.

The boss had said the day before that most youngsters flip over backwards the first time they're tied.  Jill was sure it wouldn't be that way with this one.

The next day, Jill made the still unnamed 5 month old baby stand in the tie stall all by herself while she changed her water bucket. And, she made her pick up each of her feet and added brushing the tail to the grooming routine. The little baby seemed to like it! 


The variety in routine, or just the attention perhaps? Whatever. She was sweet.  It would never do to have a cuddly racehorse, Jill knew, but still she couldn't help kissing the cute baby face and showering her with cutsie compliments.

Jill heard the boss talking about it excitedly to the partners, when she was out of the barn. "and, Jill's being doing stuff with her and she just seems so smart"   It was agreed, no one had ever heard of a baby being so good right off the bat the like that.

Jill thought they should name her breezy (because she was so easy AND please-y).

Teams

Jill was hassling a very fit, very strong 15 yr old about her study habits. Wasn't that her role as a coach? She suggested to the girl's father that if good study habits weren't developed now, even when they weren't really required, the student might not have them when she needed them in University. This, indeed, was what happened to Jill first year.

Shoving a full wheelbarrow into the middle of the barn aisle, he said "oh ya, well I successfully completed my BA and look what I'm doing!"

A fully entrenched horseman, sharing the daily chores with Jill that day, he then started ranting about how its the fashion of our sport that is so prohibitive for males. He was quite hilarious carrying on about how no real man is gonna go around wearing BREECHES for god's sake etc. etc. etc.

Jill argued for the cool factor of jeans and chaps, since she really hoped to find a boyfriend that would share the horseness with her.

The boss's partner approved of the cowboy nature of Jill's solution, and asked "so, how are you going to find this ideal man?"  The truth was, she had no idea how to get through.  She was fearless professionally but a complete coward in personal matters.  She'd done it again with Tronas, approaching him professionally instead of making a pass, ha.  But she didn't feel ready to reveal any of that...

Jill said that at last year's Christmas concert Roomie had delivered a holiday greeting card to a handsome cowboy rockstar, basically asking in modern mixtape, if he would be her pony boy. He responded by playing rhinestone cowboy., ha.  She walked right up to him and gave him her phone number. Jill laughed, "now she is still waiting for the phone to ring."  The boss's partner thought that was pretty funny. had she ever even seen him laugh before? For the rest of the day when ever he passed Jill he would chuckle and say "Glenn Campbell eh? That's pretty good."
*

Outta the mouth of babes?  When a student and her mother complimented Jill on how obviously well exam day went, she admitted she hadn't passed. 

 

"Did the boring old ladies pass?" her test-student-rider wanted to know, ha.

*
"Technically funny is not the same as actually funny and fun to be around."  Roomie was comparing the suitors in Jill's roster.  She liked the cute one, obviously.  "But after a couple days, I crave some intellectual stimulation, you know?" Jill wasn't quite as smitten.  "Isn't that what GIRLFRIENDS are for?" Roomie's date interjected, while Jill wondered if Tronas liked Indian food.

Later she was surprised to hear herself say that she only tried playing the instruments out of neccessity.  If her dreams came true she could just sing along while doing other things like the dishes and   cooking!

Teachings

Jill had to turn down $240 in earnings to earn $24, and keep the job.  She'd gotten mixed up in the scheduling, twice.  Was it totally her fault? Why did she have to be the only one to pay for it?  The situation was compounding the impending weather related migraine.


Mean while Jill's teacher told her she wasn't riding him enough. Jill thought that was the greatest criticism she'd ever heard!

She had always wanted a horse that would pony a pony, so she thought it was good that he was turned out with the ponies now.

Her teacher had come across this horse twice you know, as a horse for sale. once at barn where he was all scruffy and not working and then a few months later all trimmed up and looking more fancy. 


But she recognized him, since he'd already been vetted and shown to have navicular.

The teacher bought him anyway, (taking her chances on his condition), when the second place came down to her suggested price. 


And he had done very well for her, and now he was doing well for Jill. she was happy to be hanging out with him!

*

The thing about how hard our teacher works us, is that she works even harder than we do. EVERY day. ALL day." Jill said to a fellow students as they undid their horses' girths.

She had been joking around that since it was such pouring rain they wouldn't be able to hear the teacher and would thus basically have a "free" ride... ha.

The storm had eased up. Jill was amazed how her mount could hear the teacher...

Her horse knew not only essential verbal commands, like ter-rot, but whole entire descriptions of exercises.

On the teacher's request (not the rider's), he was leg yeilding in to the centre line, straightening for a few strides and then leg yeilding back out.   He understood turn down the centre line and leg yeild over to the wall and make a 10m circle and do shoulder in to B and straighten and half halt down the long side. it was amazing. was she supposed to stop him for starting before she told him to?

"Na, let him listen to me" the teacher said.